Migrants deported to El Salvador see their hopes of return fade

Last Tuesday, Judge Paula Dixon of San Diego, California, denied the asylum request of Andry Hernández Romero, a Venezuelan immigrant who arrived in the United States last year seeking refuge, claiming persecution based on his sexual orientation and political beliefs.

He has now been held for over 75 days in El Salvador’s maximum-security prison (CECOT), after being deported by the Trump administration under the Alien Enemies Act and accused of having ties to the Tren de Aragua gang. His lawyers and family members have repeatedly denied that Hernández Romero has any criminal record or gang affiliation, and claim he has been criminalized solely because of his tattoos.

The California court’s ruling adds to 13 other similar cases in recent weeks — according to the organization Together and Free — that have dismissed the asylum claims of deported individuals. Several immigration attorneys have condemned these judicial decisions, arguing that they are enabling the government’s actions, violating due process, and eliminating any possibility for the deportees to return to the U.S.

“DHS [Department of Homeland Security] is doing everything it can to erase the fact that Andry came to the United States seeking asylum and he was denied due process as required by our Constitution,” Lindsay Toczylowski, president of Immigrant Defenders Law Center (ImmDef), a nonprofit representing Hernandez Romero and seven other men deported to El Salvador, said in a statement.

“The idea that the government can disappear you because of your tattoos, and never even give you a day in court, should send a chill down the spine of every American. If this can happen to Andry, it can happen to any one of us,” she added.

The 32-year-old Venezuelan is also the lead plaintiff in a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) against the Trump administration for the deportation of more than 200 immigrants to Central America — an action that some analysts warn is pushing the country toward a constitutional crisis.

“I’m not in a band. I’m gay. I’m a stylist.”

Time magazine photographer Philip Holsinger documented the arrival of deported Venezuelans at El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement Center. There, he witnessed Andry Hernández Romero pleading as he was slapped and had his head shaved.

“I’m not a gang member. I’m gay. I’m a barber,” said the stylist, who never imagined he would end up in a maximum-security prison.

None of the lawyers representing the detained Venezuelans have been able to establish contact with their clients, even in cases where federal judges explicitly ordered the government to facilitate such communication.

Hernández Romero’s attorney learned of his arrest and deportation to El Salvador through photos and videos published by the media. “It’s horrifying to see someone who we’ve met and know as a sweet, funny artist in the most horrible conditions I could imagine. […] We have grave concerns about whether he can survive,” Toczylowski told CNN.

The Salvadoran organization Humanitarian Legal Relief (SJH) reported last year that 303 inmates have died in state custody in El Salvador. Alarmingly, 94% of them had not been identified as gang members.

After working for several years in hairstyling and makeup — including at beauty pageants like Miss Venezuela — Andry Hernández Romero began a long journey to the United States, crossing the treacherous Darién Gap. At a border crossing near San Diego, he was given an appointment to request asylum. Following his credible fear interview, immigration authorities determined that the threats against him were serious enough to proceed with his case, and he was allowed to enter the country.

However, just a few months later, the tattoos on his wrists — two crowns bearing the names of his parents — were deemed sufficient evidence by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to accuse the Venezuelan of being a criminal.

“The members of the Tren de Aragua are not easy to detect,” journalist Ronna Rízquez, author of the first book on the gang, told EL PAÍS. “They have a fluid nature that allows them to adapt to any environment. They’re so stealthy that for years, some even questioned whether the group really existed. Unlike Mexican cartels, they don’t publish videos in which they behead their enemies. Some arrests in Chile and Peru show their leaders to be discreet individuals who don’t have tattoos nor have they adopted the narco aesthetic.”

In response, the ACLU filed a lawsuit to prevent the Department of Homeland Security from continuing to label foreign nationals as gang members solely based on tattoos or clothing, using a point-based system in which scoring eight points is enough to be deemed a criminal: crown or train tattoos are worth four points, and wearing sportswear adds another four. As experts have pointed out, these criteria are deeply subjective and undermine due process.

No evidence of criminal charges or links to criminal gangs

A CBS investigation reveals that the Trump administration lied about the criminal records of over 200 men deported to El Salvador without judicial oversight by invoking the 1798 Foreign Enemies Act, and alleging that they were members of the criminal gang Tren de Aragua. The report cross-checked internal government documents with national and international court records, press reports, and arrest records, confirming that the overwhelming majority of those deported have no criminal convictions or even charges against them.

In response to the investigation, border czar Tom Homan said that immigration agents conducted “rigorous checks” to confirm that those expelled were members of Tren de Aragua.

However, the report found that only 22% of the Venezuelans on the list had criminal records in the United States or abroad for non-violent offenses such as theft, shoplifting, and home invasion; and only about a dozen were accused of serious crimes like murder, rape, assault, and kidnapping.

In the specific case of Hernández Romero, his tattoos were the only evidence used to accuse him. According to his lawyer, this tattoos “have a plausible explanation because he is someone who worked in the beauty pageant industry.”

A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security also claimed that Hernández Romero’s social media suggested ties to the criminal group. However, a simple review of his Instagram account shows that for over a decade he has only posted content related to makeup and hairstyling.

The Trump administration claimed it has evidence against the deportees that it cannot reveal due to “state secrets,” but Hernández Romero’s attorney denied that the government knows anything about her client that she does not. “If it was possible that they had some information, they should follow the Constitution, present that information, give us the ability to reply to it,” she told CBS.

This is the first time the United States has deported a group of immigrants accused of being foreign enemies to an overseas prison. Lee Gelernt, an ACLU attorney leading the legal fight against sending migrants to CECOT, calls the operation completely “illegal.”

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has ordered the government to halt deportations under the Alien Enemies Act, but the possibility of the deported Venezuelans returning is increasingly uncertain, which directly affects whether their asylum cases can be reopened.

For now, Hernández Romero’s legal team has launched a strong campaign for his release using the hashtag #FreeAndry and plans to appeal the judge’s recent decision.

“The fight for justice for Andry, our seven other ImmDef clients imprisoned at CECOT, and all the men unjustly disappeared continues with renewed determination today. We will continue to fight until Andry is safe and free,” said Toczylowski.

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